Myth Matters

Who are we? Epics, identity, and Nolan's Odyssey

“Epic shows us again and again the pattern of moving from the old myth to a new, carrying everything of value with it as it goes.” -- Louise Cowan  Christopher Nolan&apo

9MM Memory and the Muses

"It may be that when we no longer know what to do, we have come to our real work, that then when we no longer know which way to go, we have come to our real journey. The

Ancient ideas about Love: Eros, Ovid, and Sappho

“Energy, creation, movement and harmony, development, all happen under the aegis of love, in the domain of eros. Desire is the cause of all movement, and movement is the

Forms in Flux: Transformation in Ovid's Metamorphoses

"Some sisters said such things could never be, while others were convinced that anything was in the power of true deities---" -The Metamorphoses, Book 4, by Ovid transla

Ovid's Metamorphoses: Love and Transformation

“All things change; nothing perishes.”-- Ovid Ovid was a Roman poet who wrote his master work, The Metamorphoses or "Transformations," in 8 C.E.. He weaves more than 250

The Wild Braid: Stanley Kunitz for National Poetry month

“The universe is a continuous web. Touch it at any point and the whole web quivers.” ― Stanley Kunitz I always dedicate the April episodes of Myth Matters to poetry as a

Change perspective and change the story: thought experiment with "Briar Rose"

"But people must be taught lessons. Without them, none of them will ever learn. People are dreams and awkwardness and gawk. They prick their fingers Bleed and snore and d

Disruption, creative edges, and the fairy tale "Tatterhood"

The Norwegian fairy tale of "Tatterhood" begins as many stories do, with a kingdom that lacks something essential. Each of us lives in a fairy tale kingdom or two, in an

2MM8 The King and the Corpse

"We must unlearn the constellations to see the stars. "-- Jack Gilbert from "Tear it Down"  This episode revolves around a Hindu story, "The King and the Corpse," about

Joy, courage, and the Tigress Jataka

"Participate joyfully in the sorrows of the world. We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy. The warrior's approach is to say 'yes&

The Goose Girl and what matters most

The end of a year and our seasonal holidays invite evaluation, reflection on what the future holds, and longing for some type of renewal. A fresh start. A clean slate. Re

Inner Emptiness: The Japanese story "The Golden Axe"

“He who runs after two hares will catch neither.” Japanese proverb Feelings of emptiness, lack, greed, dishonesty--- are any of us immune from this experience? The numbe

Gifts from the Otherworld: The Adventure of Bran

The existence and importance of other worlds populated by other beings, non-human beings, is consistent across mythological traditions. Today, the dominant culture has a

Song of the Bricoleur: Rags Rosenberg

"We are all taking everything that we've learned from the past, and we're reformulating what we want to do with that and how we want to live. And so, one of the

Not Knowing the Way: Rich Peter the Peddler and leaving home

"Leaving home" is an interesting metaphor for the call to significant change. This episode is a reflection on intention, uncertainty, and how myths can help us listen to

Leaving Home: Adventures of a trickster tailor

In this episode, we take a look at the fairy tale "The Valiant Tailor" or the "The Brave Tailor," collected by the Brothers Grimm. Honestly, I almost dismissed this story

In the dark woods: what myths say about leaving home

“You must give up the life you planned in order to have the life that is waiting for you.”-- Joseph Campbell In this episode we explore the mythic theme of leaving home

Transformation and awakening: Dumuzi's Dream

This is the last episode in a 4-part series on the Sumerian myth of Inanna: Dumuzi’s Dream and The Return. After Inanna ascends from the underworld, she chooses her lover

Greater Mysteries: Transformation, music, and the myth of Inanna with singer-composer Kelli Scarr

Special episode with guest singer-composer Kelli Scarr! Scarr released her new album Greater Mysteries, a musical journey through the spiraling cycle of transformation,

Inanna's descent to the Underworld, part 3 of 4

She goes down As we go down We follow her underground Hail to Inanna Who died To become born. — Chant from the writer Starhawk and the Reclaiming Collective This is epis